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even tho i don't use glasses,yet(i checked with the eye dr every year, 20/20 in both), there will come a day that i do. i use aperture(peep) sights on my rifles. i have a aperture sight on my ruger sbh.
when i was 18yo, i was introduced to aperture sights. the US Army have known about them for years, so it was decided to learn about aperture sights on recruits(me). i did my time(6 years) and i just plain forgotten about peep sights. i was into scopes, not open sights!!!! 7 or 8 years ago, i was reintroduced on aperture sights. it was a no drill redfield 102k aperture sight on my 30-40 krag. things i've forgotten about, came back to me. now all of my guns(that have open sights) have aperture sights.

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I have found that the "Old Eyes" problem generally centers around "Technique, more than Physical Limitations."

Learning how to use the Front Sight is not something that you just start doing. It takes lots of practice to break habits that are decades old and embedded like ticks.

But just getting your glasses sussed out so you can actually see what's going on is the key thing that everyone can get done, and will improve your shooting immensely.

It also takes some time to adjust to Progressive Lenses. It took me about 6 mo before I could wear them full time for driving and I have a set of bifocals I used to use just for driving at night. I am getting them converted to progressives this week because the frames are nice Ray Ban Tortoise Frames and I will retire the black frames I've been wearing for the last few years.

The table on my Milling machine is bowed down on the ends when looking thru progressive lenses, and I have to make allowances for that when working, but. after a while your brain recalibrates and you don't have to think about this stuff.

I get my eyes checked at Costco and anyone can afford that. We have a place called "Santa Barbara Eyeglass Factory" locally and I will get the lenses made there for $60-70 in about 2 hours. Costco also makes glasses for reasonable prices as does Sam's Club.. There are usually local outfits that make glasses in most towns that don't charge an arm and a leg. Those same lenses made at one of the nationwide chains like "Lenscrafters" were more like $250 to $300. If you go to an Optometrist and buy your glasses there you will get hosed!

There is no need for anyone to be blind today because they can't afford decent glasses. Plenty of good places to get them.

Another good fix is the Red Dot type of optic. In this case the only thing you have to concentrate on is the Red Dot which is pretty prominent.

Put the dot on the target and let fly. This is very easy to do with a rifle or shotgun and is the fastest method of target acquisition there is.

It is less easy with a pistol as the Dot has to be found every time you present the gun to the target. This takes time and for me took lots of practice to maintain both the finding of the dot and the trigger control that goes along with keeping the dot on the target. Both deteriorate quickly as practice sessions get farther apart. I removed the Red Dot (Burris Fast Fire III) from my Pistol and it is going on my Browning A5 Slug Barrel where I can really get some benefit from it.

For shooting moving targets the Red Dot sight is by far the most effective sight ever concocted.

I got lazek two years ago. I went from not seeing after three feet to seeing a county mile. I now need readers for up close so I have issues with seeing open sights. Red dots and optics with adjustable objectives are my friends. If I hold a pistol out as far away from my eyes I can use the open sights. I’m pin point accurate with red dots.

A note on aperture sights. The military adopted peep sights because in theory they give faster target accusation. For this reason the apertures were large. A real diopter sight has an aperture of one mm or less. This to let the light (image) become focused in you eye like through the lens of a camera onto the film.

I know that with a small aperture, the image is not that bright and in low light conditions. This may not always be the best option, but I urge those using aperture a sights to give a smaller size a try. I did and it made a significant difference. I now have even smaller ones I use when there is enough light. Dedicated target shooters often have an adjustable iris, like in a camera on the aperture.

I hope most can remember film cameras and understand my explanation now that we are deep into the digital world..

I did photography back in the day and still do it now. Just use different equipment. I still use the aperture adjustments to effect changes in the final image with my very nice digital cameras.

I wasn't aware there were adjustable apertures available for peep sights but in my defense, I don't shoot aperture sights much if at all. Have never done so in a target situation. I will have to look into that and see if it helps me.

Join Date: May 2012
Location: USA
Posts: 4,356
ExArmy11b will become famous soon enoughExArmy11b will become famous soon enough
Older "One Ragged Hole" sights vs. new ones
For those of us interested in the "One Ragged Hole" rear sights, I just got a new pair of them, the 9/32" and the 7/32" aperture.

I have an "older" (original?) 9/32" one on my .357 Blackhawk, and it looks rougher and feels "softer". The new ones I got today look more like the material Ruger uses for their sight blades. The older one looks "rougher".

Anyway, my point is, many people found the older "One Hole" sights to be unsuitable for field use, and some people reported bending or breakage.

It seems, since Warren Outdoors started selling them, they are now made better.

I will leave my "old" one on the Blackhawk, but the new ones will work for me, for future purchases. I figured I'd order a set before they go out of production again......the original designer of these passed away, but it seems either his family or someone else took over the name and is making an "updated" version.

Gotta say, getting older sucks, but it does beat the alternative. I'm farsighted, got the progressive lenses. I had the lined trifocals, and could do pretty well with those. One thing that helps, is dry firing. It definitely helps in a more rapid presentation, from an IWB holster. It also allows you to practice sight alignment, to the point of being automatic. Gun comes up, you focus on the target, and hit. After some practice, it's amazing how you can maintain a decent group, and barely look at the sights. As to a steel torso sized target, my grandson, who is now a cop, gets aggravated when a broke down old firefighter outshoots him. He's starting to do dry fire practice.
He bought me a laser bullet, a couple of years ago, for Christmas. That helps too. And, you can shoot that in the house.

Watch out for sights on an A5. I had a "gunsmith", solder on a rifle sight, on an A5 barrel. I had the original flamethrower ( polychoke) removed, the barrel cut, and crowned to 18.5, and those sights put on, for deer hunting. Before you have heart failure, this was a '29 model, that looked like it was built in 1829. Lord knows how many miles it had bounced around in someone's trunk. I took it out to sight it in. About 5 shots later, something slammed me between my eyes. With my friend freaking out, because he was thinking I shot myself, and with copious amounts of blood, running down my face, I saw my sights on the ground. The sight sheared off, when the barrel recoiled, and nailed me pretty good. I do my own soldering now.